Vehicles requiring high traction such as tractors, lift trucks, and similar heavy duty industrial equipment often utilize weights and counterweights mounted upon the vehicle to increase its net weight and improve weight distribution and thereby improve traction. The addition of separate weights or counterweights to conventional vehicle components requires providing space for such weights and means for attaching the weights to the vehicle body or frame. The necessity to provide space for the weights, and to locate the same upon the vehicle, complicates vehicle design and construction, and often detracts from the appearance and aesthetic features of the vehicle.
It is an object of the invention to provide a high traction heavy duty vehicle wherein the need for separate weights and counterweights is eliminated, and wherein vehicle weight may be relatively evenly distributed on the vehicle.
Another object of the invention is to provide a high traction vehicle utilizing a frame wherein the frame is formed of heavy metal plate, and the frame itself provides the extra weight necessary in a high traction vehicle usually achieved with auxiliary weights and counterweights.
A further object of the invention is to provide a high traction vehicle utilizing a heavy duty heavy metal plate frame wherein the frame is of a length substantially equal to the vehicle length and includes lateral portions of a width substantially equal to the vehicle width, the frame including edges which may serve as the vehicle bumpers, and the frame lateral portions may serve as running boards and fender supports.
An additional object of the invention is to provide a high traction vehicle utilizing a heavy metal plate frame wherein the extra weight added to the vehicle by the frame does not detract from the vehicle appearance nor complicate the vehicle's design and construction, and the frame constitutes a substantial portion of the net vehicle weight, preferably, approximately 50% of the vehicle net weight.
In the practice of the invention a high traction vehicle includes the usual vehicle components such as a body, frame, and motor driven wheels and axles mounted upon the frame. However, in the invention, the frame constitutes a substantial portion of the vehicle weight, and the frame is formed of a heavy metal plate from one to six inches or more in thickness. Preferably, the frame is of a length substantially equal to that of the vehicle, and the frame includes lateral portions defining a frame width substantially equal to the vehicle width. The lateral portions may be homogeneously defined upon a frame plate, or may constitute separate metal plates affixed to a main frame plate defining the vehicle length.
Preferably, the frame includes front and rear edges which may define front and rear bumpers, respectively, for the vehicle, and the lateral portions constitute a support for the vehicle body, such as for supporting fenders. Also, the frame lateral portion adjacent the front region may be used to define a running board aiding access to the vehicle cab. Wheel axle support cradles are defined upon the frame upper surface, and the frame configuration is such as to be readily incorporated into the vehicle configuration without detracting from the appearance thereof, and in fact, contributes to the vehicle appearance emphasizing the sturdy and heavy duty aspect of the vehicle.